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This book is a "must read" for anyone who has been touch be adoption.
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With the train station within walking distance and Missouri being centrally located, it's no wonder that The Willows Maternity Sanitarium was sought out by many unmarried pregnant women.
It was advertised as a clean, safe place where a young woman could live during her pregnancy, give up her child and return home with no one being the wiser.
It appears to be a far cry from other maternity homes I have researched in this era and offered excellent care, seclusion and protection exclusively for "the better class of unfortunate women." Founded in 1905 by Edwin and Cora May Haworth, it was often referred to as the "Ritz" or the "Waldorf" of the Kansas City homes for unwed mothers.
Other homes in the area included St. Vincent's Hospital, Eastside Maternity Hospital (later known as Kansas City Cradle), Florence Crittenton Home and the Fairmount Maternity Hospital.
The philosophy of The Willows is best expressed by the following quote: "She knows that she has made a mistake. It had already occurred and she cannot avoid the misfortune that follows in the wake of this mistake. And in any case she cannot provide the child with freedom from the stigma of conception that society places on cases like hers."
Adoptions were handled legally and with care to select good adoptive parents.
In the 1920's, women came from Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and West Virginia. As transportation expanded, they came from everywhere.
Their ages ranged from 15 to 27 years, with about 20% of them being under 18 years of age.
This is a typical delivery room of the day; any women who encountered problems during delivery of their child were rushed to a nearby hospital. Thousands of babies were born in rooms such as these. Both mother and child received the best medical care of the day.
Rarely did a baby remain at The Willows for longer than six months. It was also a policy at The Willows to separate a child from its mother at the end of ten days. This policy came under attack in 1930 and it was believed that such a policy might encourage women to lead a lose life as it relieved the mother of the care of her newborn and allowed her to return to her home and her regular routine so quickly.
The Willows did not sell babies. Those wishing to adopt submitted an application along with letters of reference. The waiting list was often lengthy and months might pass from the time of the application and the actual home visit. After the couple was approved, they had up to a year to select a child. To assist the adoptive parents, The Willows would match the background of the babies with that of the adoptive parents as well as the physical characteristics. Since most couples tended to choose the first baby they saw, they were shown three babies all of whom were right for the couple. Then, a nurse would select one baby from the three the adoptive parents had been shown. The baby was then examined by a pediatrician and the couple was advised of the results.
Often adoptive parents would wish to bring their baby home for the Christmas holidays. The Willows accomodated these parents by boarding the baby until it went to its new home. The fees were very reasonable for the entire process. The adoptive parents were required to sign a petition before a notary within a year of receiving the baby.
It has been estimated that The Willows provided as many as 35,000 babies for adoption during its existence from 1905 to 1969. Its been said that a basement full of birth records which were carried into the back yard and burned when the home closed its doors in 1969. While this was never proven, the records appear to be gone and we will never know for certain what happened to them.
Some residents of The Willows can be found on census records in 1910, 1920 and 1930. Staff and some infant residents are listed by first and last name in 1920. In 1930, infants are listed by given name and age, noting the birthplace of the mother.
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The Willows Maternity Sanitarium
Kansas City, Missouri
1924
There was no shortage of employed staff; they maintained a sufficient number of nurses, as well as a head nurse to oversee the care of the young women and their babies. They also employed an obstetrician and a pediatrician. Maintenance, kitchen and grounds personnel were also paid.
Patient's rooms appear to be clean, well lighted, with adequate furnishings. Many of the women who resided in these rooms used aliases or nicknames to protect themselves and their families. Rarely were their real names ever used. Other rooms, larger than the one pictured here, were shared by three or four girls. The young women were responsible for keeping their rooms clean and doing their laundry. City street cars and, at night, the downtown lights could be seen from the windows in some of the rooms. There was also a store on the premises where some personal products, writing paper and pens could be purchased and ample reading material was available.
Most unwed pregnant women left their hometowns before they began to "show". It was requested that a woman enter The Willows early in her pregnancy so she could be well prepared for the birth of the child. Several types of massages were given to prevent "stretch marks" and to aid in labor and delivery. Many of the women left with no marks or signs to indicate they had ever been pregnant and given birth.
Physicians were always welcomed to inspect The Willows so they could assure their patients that they would receive quality care. 
The nursing staff had a service area for the care of the babies. There they were bathed and diapered and were given routine examinations.
Babies were well cared for at The Willows. An outdoor nursery was open in warm weather so the babies could benefit from the fresh air. There appear to be in excess of twenty cribs in this photo; the child in the foreground may be as old as five months.
Some children remained longer.
Back To The Adoption Experience Homepage.
It didn't matter who you were, if you had the money you could buy a baby. No background checks were made and records were often falisfied.
Some maternity homes operated above board while other were no more than baby brokers.
Over-crowding in orphanages in the east lead to the transport of hundreds of children to the midwest. Most never saw their parents again.
Read about these trains, the agencies who provided the young travelers who rode them, carrying few belongings and not knowing where they would end up.
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